petrolatum

UK:*UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ˌpɛtrəˈleɪtəm/US:USA pronunciation: respellingUSA pronunciation: respelling(pe′trə lā′təm, -lä′-)


WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025
pet•ro•la•tum  (pe′trə lā′təm, -lä′-),USA pronunciation n. 
  1. Chemistry, Drugsa yellowish or whitish, translucent, gelatinous, oily, semisolid, amorphous mass obtained from petroleum: used as a lubricant, rust preventive, in the manufacture of cosmetics, and in medicine as a protective dressing, emollient, and ointment base. Also called petro′leum jel′ly. 
  • Neo-Latin; see petroleum, -ate2
  • 1885–90, American.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
petrolatum / ˌpɛtrəˈleɪtəm/
  1. a translucent gelatinous substance obtained from petroleum; used as a lubricant and in medicine as an ointment base and protective dressing
    Also called: mineral jelly, petroleum jelly
Etymology: 19th Century: from petrol + Latin -atum -ate1
'petrolatum' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
Chap Stick - Vaseline - liquid petrolatum - mineral jelly - mineral oil - petrochemical - petroleum jelly - zinc ointment

Forum discussions with the word(s) "petrolatum" in the title:


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